Olga Yu. Vasilyeva’s research while affiliated with Central Siberian Botanical Garden, Russian Academy of Sciences and other places

Kinship and genetic diversity determination among six rose varieties from the Grandiflora group were carried out using ISSR thechnics. The studied varities were divided into 3 clades: I) ‘Lezginka’, ‘Queen Elizabeth’ and ‘Koralovy surpriz’ varieties; II) ‘Gurzuf’ and ‘Love’ varieties; III) ‘Komsomolsky ogonek’ variety formed a separate branch. This division into clades was confirmed by a statistical comparison of morphometric characters. On the basis of the obtained data, it can be concluded that the analysis using the selected primer group is well-suited for differentiation rose varieties into groups, which makes it possible, for one thing, to determine the genetic distance between varieties, and for another, to use these data in the future by certification of the varieties promising by resistance characters to the continental climate conditions.

Levels of biologically active and reserve substances were investigated in the leaves and rhizomes of Paeonia anomala L., P. hybrida Pall., and P. lactiflora Pall. The peonies’ leaves are rich in ascorbic acid (1205.7 mg/100g in P. anomala ) and tannins (15.9% in P. lactiflora and 15.7% in P. anomala ) at the beginning of the growth season. Concentrations of flavonols, pectins, and carotenoids in the Siberian peonies are low at the beginning of the growth season. P. lactiflora is a promising species for further research on the set and levels of biologically active and reserve substances in rhizomes because this species stands out among the three Siberian species in terms of the levels of catechins (1297.8 mg/100g), protopectins (10.1%), saponins (19.2%), and sugars (22.1%) in rhizomes. In these parts of the plant, starch (18.6%) accumulates the most in P. hybrida among the studied peonies species. Concentrations of the analyzed substances in the rhizomes of the peonies change significantly by the end of the growth season and vary widely among these species. Levels of ascorbic acid (except for P. hybrida ), protopectins, and starch increase significantly while concentrations of catechins and sugars decrease in the rhizomes by the end of the growth season.

Identifying among varieties and natural forms of roses were carried out using ISSR thechnics to determine kinship. It was studied 6 foreign varieties, 16 varieties bred in Nikitsky Botanical Garden, as well as 2 natural forms (Rosa canina and Rosa chinensis). Despite some samples breaking into three clades, many of them don’t belong to any of these groups due to the lack of relative ties, that confirms the high genetic diversity in the studied material. The revealed molecular genetic differences in rose forms and varieties can be used to identify and certify cultivars promising for their complex resistance to the continental climate conditions.